Underground fire kills 25 at illegal coal mine in central China

An underground fire killed 25 workers at an illegal coal mine in central China's Henan province, the government said Tuesday, dpa reported.

Rescue teams recovered the last of the 25 bodies early Tuesday after cables caught fire late Monday at the mine, run by the Dongxing Coal Mining Company in Henan's Xinmi city, the State Administration of Work Safety reported on its website.

Rescue workers saved the other six miners among the 31 working underground when the fire broke out, the administration said.

Safety investigators said the mine was operated illegally, the official Xinhua news agency said without elaborating.

Police detained three of the mine's managers for questioning and froze the mine's assets, the agency said.

Accidents kill thousands of people annually in Chinese coal mines. The accidents are often triggered by outdated equipment and poor safety measures, especially at illegal mines.